Powering aluminium PART 1: Inside the global smelting energy map (2023–24)
Aluminium has always carried a contradiction. It is the metal the world turns to for lightweighting, electrification and decarbonisation. And yet producing it remains one of the most energy-intensive industrial activities on the planet. However, that contradiction is finally catching up with the industry. Over 2023 and 2024, as the world’s primary aluminium output edged upward, a parallel battle unfolded behind the scenes in the fight over electrons. What powered the smelters mattered as much as how much they produced. And the global power map that emerges from the latest data is a story of contrasts — between coal and hydro, between gas-rich Gulf producers and hydro-blessed Scandinavia, between Asia’s ambitious new expansions and Africa’s slow-moving grids. This is the first of a two-part series unpacking how power consumption is reshaping aluminium. This part establishes the ground reality, unveiling the cold, quantitative picture of who is producing aluminium and what kind of energy is powering it. Part 2 will move from data to direction: the new strategic signals emerging from the recently held ADIPEC 2025, and what they mean for aluminium’s energy future.
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